1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a machine that peels and debarks logs for use in the log home construction industry. More specifically, the machine of this invention produces peeled logs that simulate a hand-hewn, drawknife effect while replacing the need to have logs peeled by hand.
2. Background of the Invention
Log homes have been known and used as dwellings for centuries. In recent times, log homes have surged in popularity and there has been a substantial increase in the construction of log cabins and homes. The demand for log homes may result from their beauty, longevity and natural insulation properties. The latter is especially important in freezing and subfreezing mountain weather.
The construction of a log home is a demanding task, due to the raw state of the construction materials. The first steps in building a log home are to select and dry the logs and then to peel the bark off the logs. If a hand-hewn look is desired, the bark must be peeled off the logs in a manner that results in a relatively smooth surface along the natural contours of the logs. A method of peeling a log that would leave gouges or grooves in the log would substantially detract from the beauty of a log home. There is a desire to reduce the amount of labor required to properly peel the logs while insuring that the natural contours of the logs are retained.
In the past, hand-hewn logs were attained by manually peeling logs with a draw knife. A draw knife is designed with a handle on each end of a blade with a bevel on one edge. A person operates a manual draw knife by straddling a felled log, placing the draw knife on the log with the bevel on the blade facing the log, and then dragging the draw knife along the log. The blade of the draw knife cuts through the bark and cambium layers of wood. The dragging action pulls the draw knife blade along the top of the hard layers of wood leaving them intact. The result is a relatively smooth peeled surface along the contour of the log. This method of attaining a hand hewn log is very labor intensive, hazardous, time consuming, and not economically attractive.
Due perhaps to the popularity and desirability of log home ownership, there are a plurality of web sites relating to log homes. Indeed, manufacturers of log homes and accessories for them are easily accessed in all parts of the United States and Canada. There is an internet link at http://loghomelinks.com that features over 400 links to builders, manufacturers and accessories for those interested in this art.
Concerning patents, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,363,672 Baker discloses a log home construction and methods. Peeling or otherwise debarking the logs is not addressed in this patent. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,437 Beeson discloses a log peeler designed to be operated by one person with the aid of a winch. The log peeler of ""437 is designed for an individual to peel logs for his own use and is distinct from the present invention which relates to a machine. Fox, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,595,041, discloses a portable log peeling apparatus having a drawknife. The ""437 and ""041 art seems geared to the do-it-yourselfer and is not akin to the automated lineal log peeler and debarker of the instant invention.
Other parties in the custom-built log home industry, such as Senty Log Homes (http://senty.com/logs) advertise that their log construction method includes hand-peeling. The dangers and physical difficulty required to peel logs manually with a knife are numerous; the slowness of hand peeling and the skills needed to master this endeavor are additional factors that indicate a need for a lineal log peeler and debarker such as the one disclosed herein by applicant.
The WG Benjey company whose internet link is www.benjey.com features log home components with a hand-peeled look. The Benjey equipment is available to manufacturers of log homes in various sizes, and priced out of the range of most individual home builders. The Benjey log peelers are available in various sizes. The equipment sold by WG Benjey is distinct from the equipment that is disclosed by applicant in the present invention. Among the differences are the way in which the machines peel logs; the instant invention is a machine that is operated by electricity and requires an operator or automated controller who uses an electronic control panel to guide the machine through its operation, including the initial step of feeding live logs to the machine to the final step of the ejection of debarked logs. The Benjey machine is air-powered and uses a spinning/peeling technique which is distinct from the operation of the instant debarking machine.
Additional prior art includes patents that relate to lathing or ring debarking of logs. The products of logs treated thusly are smooth and regularly shaped pole-like wood products. An example of such prior art is typified by Koike in U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,777. Logs may be peeled in order to produce wood veneer as shown by Platt in U.S. Pat. No. 4,579,159. Further prior art concerning log debarking includes U.S. Pat. No. 4,784,196 to Pousette. Disclosed in ""196 is a method and apparatus that produces logs peeled in a bark/no bark alternating style that resembles a barber pole pattern on a log""s surface. A second debarking process occurs to remove remaining bark.
It is an object of the present invention to furnish a machine that safely and automatically debarks logs. In one preferred embodiment, the machine is controlled by an operator who sits in a control booth from which he controls the speed of the cutterhead carriage and a plurality of other controls that move a series of logs through the debarking process. The logs are then stored for use in a particular home building project.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a method for peeling logs with a natural, hand-peeled look for use in the log home construction industry. The method safely and efficiently prepares the logs for log home construction and avoids the use of hand-peeling with a drawknife. The logs debarked by the machine of this invention can range in length from about 6 to over 50 feet. They can range from about 7 to about 21 inches in diameter and weigh up to about 3000 pounds.
Another object of this invention is to provide a machine that peels and debarks logs with an automatic controller. The safety features which are inherent in the lineal log peeler and debarker are even more apparent when the operation is controlled remotely.
Safety, ease of use and further objects of the invention will be discussed and claimed in the detailed description of preferred embodiments that follows.
The invention discloses a lineal log peeler and debarker, a uniquely fashioned cutterhead that rotates rapidly and debarks logs two surfaces at a time. The operation is safely controlled by an operator in a protected booth or remotely controlled. The resulting logs are peeled safely, efficiently, and are suitable for use in the modern log home industry. The log peeling and debarking process as described by this invention can easily process about 2000 logs (about 40,000 lineal feet) in about 12 weeks. This produces enough logs, on average, for about 5 homes. A manual undertaking of such an effort would be much more physically taxing and inefficient in comparison.